Former reported Rangers target, Ivan Toney, has picked up the EFL Championship Player of the Month award for October following a goalscoring spree for Brentford.
Toney caught the attention of a number of clubs with his performances for Peterborough United last season, for whom he scored 26 goals in 39 appearances.
Both Rangers and Celtic were linked with the striker during the summer [Scottish Sun], but he ended up staying in England, joining Brentford at the end of August for an initial fee of £5m that could eventually rise to £10m with add-ons [Sky Sports].
By that point, Rangers had already turned elsewhere, bringing in Kemar Roofe and Cedric Itten to strengthen the club’s forward line.
Both strikers have done well since their arrival at Ibrox and appear to have settled nicely into the squad.
Toney has made a sensational impact in the Championship, though, and is looking an inspired buy.
Despite failing to net in his first four matches, the 24-year-old now has 10 goals in 13 appearances for the Bees across all competitions.
All of his goals have come in the league, with his eight strikes in October earning him the Player of the Month award.
Toney scored three successive braces at the beginning of the month against Preston North End, Coventry City and Sheffield Wednesday. Then, after drawing a rare blank in a defeat to Stoke City, he netted against Norwich City and Luton Town.
“It is my job to score goals,” he told Sky Sports after receiving his award. “I’ve come to a club where the striker gets a lot of chances.”
“I am thankful to the players around me because they are putting it on a plate for me and it is just my job to finish those chances.”
Toney may have been much more prolific than any of Steven Gerrard’s forwards so far this season, but the manager is likely content with the attacking firepower at his disposal, given that the Gers scored 11 times in their final two matches prior to the international break.
